The present disclosure relates to a tray table of the type found on transportation seating products, such as railway and aircraft passenger seats. Conventional tray tables typically extend the width of a seat back, and are moveable between a stowed position flush with and latched to the seat back of a seat and a deployed position with the tray table extending away from the seat back in a generally horizontal position for use by an aft-seated occupant. Other well-known designs include bi-fold tray tables that are hinged in the middle and are typically stowed in a folded configuration in an armrest. To deploy the table, the arm cap is raised, the table pivoted out of a storage cavity in the armrest, pivoted laterally across the lap of the seat occupant, after which the table is unfolded at the hinge to form a full width tray table.
The inventors recognized a need for a tray table that occupies minimal stowage space, affording seat designers to include additional amenities. The inventors further recognized a need for a tray table that, while still useful to a passenger, takes up less space than a standard tray table.